Death row
by Skovko
Summary: Seth is a journalist and he's on death row to interview an inmate. She doesn't give him anything that the world doesn't already know about her story. Until he turns off the recorder. Her true story makes him act. He's gonna get her out. (Cameos by Randy Orton, Sarah Logan, Charly Caruso, Mandy Rose and Braun Strowman.)
1. The story

Seth smiled when she was escorted into the room. It was an almost naked room. Boring, white walls. All there was in the room was a table and two chairs. He was already seated while a guard with the name tag Randy Orton walked her over to the other seat. She sat down and had her hands cuffed to the table. The chain was long enough for her to reach around a bit but not for her to get to the other side of the table.

"Is that really necessary?" Seth asked.  
"Precautions," Randy answered.

Seth nodded. He was on death row. He was in a place full of murderers and half of them were bat shit crazy and would try to use him to get out if they got the chance. He didn't have a bad feeling when it came to the woman he was about to interview and he had learned to trust his instinct after being a reporter for little over a decade. Randy nodded at Seth and then left them alone in the room and closed the door.

"I hope you don't mind I record this," Seth said.

He pointed at the tape recorder in front of him and she made a small wave with her right hand to tell him to go ahead. He pressed record and took a deep breath.

"This is Seth Rollins interviewing Charlene Shooter," he said.

He looked up in her ice blue eyes and forgot how to breathe for a second. Her havana brown hair wasn't anything special but those eyes pierced right through his heart and soul. There was a story hidden behind those eyes. A story he wanted to know.

"How are you doing, Charlene? Are they treating you okay in here?" He started soft.  
"The food's alright but the bed could have been better," she said.

He let out a small chuckle and wet his lips. He tried with a smile but there came nothing in return. Just those icy eyes that stared at him.

"Why don't you get to the point?" She said.  
"Straight to business, eh?" He said.  
"I wish I could say I got all day but they only gave us 30 minutes," she said.  
"I can always schedule to come back another day so we can continue for a longer interview," he offered.  
"Not interested," she said. "You got today and that's it."

He nodded. She had just laid out the ground rules and he had to follow. It was her choice and her life, no matter how little time she had left to live.

"Okay, first of all I'd like to thank you for letting me speak to you. I know you've been a wanted woman all around but you've turned everyone down but me," he said.

He held a small pause, giving her a chance to tell him why. Mostly because he was curious himself why she had picked him out of all the reporters that had been dying to hear her story. She didn't say anything. She just nodded and waited for him to continue.

"So, let's start with the hard, cold facts first. You murdered your father," he said.  
"Guilty," she said.  
"Guilty," he smiled again. "You confessed right away but you never gave a reason. And that's why I'm here. I wanna tell your story. I wanna tell the world why you killed your father."  
"I felt like it," she shrugged.  
"You felt like it?" He asked.  
"Yeah, I had nothing better to do that day," she said.

His mouth dropped open a bit. He had never misjudged anyone before. He had always been proud of his talent of seeing through people, knowing within a second who was really good and who was really bad. He hadn't believed for one second she was evil or crazy but what she had just said, she had nothing better to do that day, made him question his talent.

"So you just went to visit your parents and chose to stab him nine times because you had nothing better to do?" He asked.  
"I would have repeated stabbing him if that fucking knife hadn't gotten stuck in his body. I couldn't pull it out again after the ninth time," she said.

He knew she was lying. Not about the stabbing but about the reason. There was a deeper story there but she wasn't about to share it with him.

"Do you know why I said yes when you asked to come interview me?" She asked.  
"No," he answered.  
"You've been here before. Five months ago. You interviewed Sarah Logan," she said.  
"I remember," he said.  
"I saw you that day and I found you beautiful. There isn't much beauty in this place so you sure lit it up," she said.

She gave him a little smile that quickly dropped again. He couldn't help but smile back. For a second the ice in her eyes had been broken and she had looked soft, warm and likeable.

"But the most important thing is that you told her story like it was supposed to be told. You didn't lie or twist her words around and I know that would have been easy to do. That chick is not normal," she said.  
"Most people killing eight men aren't normal," he said.  
"She told me that day what you had talked about and I thought for sure you'd twist it around. We've seen it happen many times in here. Who gives a fuck about a bunch of murderers on death row, right?" She stared directly into his eyes.  
"I care," he said.  
"You published it the next week and it was all there, word for word," she pointed at the tape recorder. "You put the entire interview up on your webpage so people could hear her voice, her words, her story. For that I respect you."  
"I wanna put your story up too," he said.  
"You got it now," she said.  
"There's nothing there that the world doesn't already know," he said.  
"Because there's nothing else to tell," she said. "Turn it off."

He turned off the tape recorder without a second thought. He still had his phone recording in his pocket but she didn't know that. As far as she knew, everything was off record. And it was. He would never use a personal recording for his job.

"When I was 9, my father started coming into the bathroom when I showered," she said.

He looked up from the tape recorder but she was looking down at her own hands.

"When I was 10, he raped me for the first time," she said.  
"I'm sorry," he said lowly.  
"When I was 13, I told my mother. At first she was like, yeah sure honey, I'm gonna fix this. But she wasn't gonna fix anything because she already knew. As long as he was focused on me, it meant less beating and rape for her. That was all that mattered to her," she said.

He broke protocol and leaned across the table to take her hands in his. She looked up into his eyes. Those ice blue eyes were no longer cold. They weren't even sad. They were dead.

"When I was 15, I started partying. I got to choose the men and it didn't hurt. I fucked around like a bunny, trying to feel something other than pain. Everytime I laid down with a man, it felt like someone cared about me for those few minutes. It was fake and all in my head but I needed it so badly," she said.

He squeezed her hands and then raised a hand to stroke her face. She leaned back, not allowing him to touch her face. He dropped his hand again and made good with holding her hands. She allowed that.

"I grew up, moved out and tried to go on as if nothing happened. My sister didn't know because he never touched her. I don't know why. She married young and got a daughter herself. When she came to me one day and told me her daughter had said that our father had done things to her, I snapped. That was the final day in his life. I didn't think. I drove straight over, barged into their home during breakfast and stabbed him to death," she said.  
"The world needs to know this," he said.  
"No, it doesn't. Mom has become a media darling, always crying over her loss and saying she doesn't understand why her daughter did it. My sister isn't talking either even though she knows. She stands by my mother's side. And I'm okay with that. I want them to live their lives without having the shadow of me hanging above their heads," she said.  
"But you'll die. You're on death row, for crying out loud. If people knew the truth, you could get a life sentence instead," he said.  
"I don't wanna spend 40 years in jail, Seth," she said. "I found my peace with all of this. You know my story now and I trust you won't ever tell anyone. Even if you do, who's gonna believe you? You're just a journalist that was mad about me not giving you anything so you came up with your own version."

He let go of her hands and leaned back in his chair.

"I would never do that to you. I'm not one of those asshole journalists that want a story at any cost. I only publish the truth and I would never break your trust," he said.  
"Thanks," she nodded a bit. "You know how we get to decide our final meal in here. If only we got to decide a final man to be with too. I'd choose you in a heartbeat."

He couldn't help but laugh and she actually smiled at him. A bigger smile and it lasted longer. A few seconds later the door opened and the guard Randy entered again. Her smiled dropped and back were those ice blue eyes.

"Time's up," Randy said.  
"Thank you for listening," she still looked at Seth.  
"Thank you for sharing," he said.

Three hours later he watched as his friend Roman listened to the secret recording on his phone.

"Poor woman," Roman said.  
"We're getting her out," Seth said.  
"What?" Roman stared in shock. "No, Seth, this is not like the others we busted out. This is death row. The search for her will be so much bigger."  
"So?" Seth was getting annoyed. "This is why we got men inside every fucking prison. We always knew there was a chance that one day we would have to use those on death row as well."  
"Fuck!" Roman ran a hand down his face. "Yeah, I knew. I just never thought it would actually happen."

He looked at his friend. A man he considered a little brother.

"So we're getting her out?" He asked.  
"We're getting her out," Seth was determined.


	2. Soup and bread

Seth's short interview with her had been published a week later as she had expected. A guard named Elias had played the interview for her on his phone so she could hear that Seth had kept his word.

She had always liked Elias. Not many guards cared about the inmates but he was one of the few that did. She had no idea he would be part of turning her world upside down three weeks after Seth had been there. It was a normal Wednesday morning when he suddenly pulled her aside on her walk to breakfast.

"Ssh, not a word," he whispered in her ear.

She had heard stories from other inmates about how some of the guards took advantage of their power and sexual abused them but Elias' name had never been in those stories and something about him made her follow him without screaming or putting up a fight. He quickly pulled her into a room where another guard named Charly Caruso laid unconscious on the floor in her underwear. Her uniform was lying next to her.

"What the fuck did you do?" Charlene stared at Elias.  
"Take your clothes off," he said.  
"What? Elias, what the hell is going on? Do you need a scapegoat of her assault?" She asked.  
"No, put on her uniform," he answered.  
"Not until you tell me what's going on," she crossed her arms.  
"I'm getting you out of here," he said.

She let out a cold laugh. Elias might be one of the nice guards but apparently he was also insane.

"Now!" He gave her a hard look.  
"Right, I'm just gonna waltz out of here and no one will care," she said.  
"Mandy Rose is at the front desk today. She never looks up from her phone. You can walk right past her," he said.  
"And the cameras?" She asked.  
"Braun shut them down in this area but you gotta hurry. We only got little time," he said.  
"Braun? I always liked the big man," she said. "And what comes after?"  
"Out in the parking lot you'll find a white car without license plates. Seth is waiting for you," he said.  
"Seth? As in Seth Rollins?" She asked.

He nodded and she started undressing. She had undressed for every guard in the building many times so there was nothing unusual in him seeing her in her underwear. Soon she was in Charly's uniform with the gun and everything. He handed her a plastic card with Charly's name and picture on it.

"Keep your head down and walk straight out without talking with anybody. The cameras won't catch you and they won't be looking for you before they find her," he gestured to Charly.  
"They're gonna think I assaulted her," she said.  
"You're on death row, Charlene. Even if they catch you, what are they gonna do? Give you another year on top of your sentence?" He chuckled and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Now go. Don't run. Don't draw any attention to yourself. Just walk out of here."

She took a deep breath and opened the door. She kept her head down as she walked through the corridors, using Charly's key card to open door after door. She cast a glance at the blonde woman Mandy, the guardian at the final door, before swiping the card. Mandy cast a glance on the computer screen and then waved a hand in the air.

"Bye, Charly," she said.

Charlene walked out and tasted the fresh air. She wished she had the time to stop and really take it in. That had to wait. She continued walking towards the parking lot, searching for a white car without license plates. She fought the urge to run there when she finally spotted it. She walked fast, opened the door to the passenger seat and got in. Seth already had the motor running and he started driving away before she could even reach for the seat belt.

"How are you doing?" He asked.  
"Honestly? I don't know. I don't know what's going on here," she answered.  
"We got you out," he chuckled.  
"But why?" She asked.  
"Because you don't deserve to sit in there and rot. You don't deserve to die for what you did," he answered.

He took a look in the rear view to see the prison one last time.

"You shared your story and I listened. I can't share it with the world but I can damn straight do something about it," he said.  
"What comes next?" She asked.  
"First I'm taking you to a safe house. We gotta lay low for a long time, probably months, before we can get you out of the country on a fake ID," he answered.  
"And where will I be going once that happens?" She asked.  
"I don't know yet. Somewhere they can't demand them to send you back," he answered. "Don't worry, we've done this many times before. You're safe with us."  
"Us?" She asked.

It was a two and a half hour car ride and he filled her in on as much as he could. This thing was way bigger than she could ever have imagined and half of it she didn't get. A bunch of people working normal jobs in prisons or somewhere they could get close to prisons like Seth with his reporter job and then every once in a while coming across people that didn't deserve to be there and then breaking them out like they had done with her today. It was a lot to take in.

They arrived at the house by the edge of a forest somewhere closer to lunch time than breakfast. She still hadn't gotten anything to eat since Elias had made her leave before getting breakfast. Her stomach was growling when they arrived. Seth walked her into the house and out in the kitchen where they were met by a big man. Not as big as the guard Braun Strowman but big.

"That's Roman," Seth said.  
"Charlene, right?" Roman shook her hand. "I was just about to make lunch. Do you want some?"  
"Anything with mustard if that's possible," she said.  
"I think we got some," he chuckled.  
"And jalapeños?" She asked.  
"You like spicy food?" He opened the fridge. "I also see some chili sauce and leftover of the garlic pheasant from last night. Do you want me to make you a hot as hell sandwich?"  
"That sounds awesome," she said.

Roman made her the sandwich as requested and she sat down and ate. For a few minutes the two men just watched her as she seemed lost in her own little world.

"This is nice," she looked at them. "The silence."  
"Never a quiet moment on death row?" Seth asked.  
"Some of them shout all night, others shout all day," she answered. "You only get silence in there when you're being carried out in a body bag."  
"That's not gonna be you," Roman smiled.  
"No, lucky me," she didn't sound happy. "So what do I do around here? Clean or cook or...?"  
"Nothing," Seth stopped her. "You relax. Let me show you to your room."  
"I get a room?" She asked.  
"Of course," he chuckled.

She followed him through the house until he opened a door to a room. She stepped inside and looked around. It was a simple room but bigger and warmer than the small cell she was used to. She walked over to the bed and sat down.

"An actual bed," she looked at him. "I don't mean to sound ungrateful but I'm really tired."  
"A lot happened today. Take a nap. If you sleep all afternoon, I'll wake you for dinner. I'm cooking. I hope you like minestrone soup," he said.  
"I'll eat anything," she said. "Thanks, Seth."  
"There's clothes that should fit you in the closet whenever you want to change out of that uniform," he said before he left.

She didn't know how long she had slept but she was woken by a knock on the door. She opened her eyes to see Elias standing in the open door, leaning his shoulder against the door frame and smiling at her.

"You made it safely," he said.  
"How's Charly?" She asked as she sat up.  
"Confused. She doesn't remember what happened. Your face is already all over the news. We knew this would happen. You can't leave the house right now," he said.  
"So I'm a prisoner here too?" She asked.  
"I'm sorry, Charlene. I know how it might seem but we're only trying to help you," he said.  
"I know," she sighed. "I assume you woke me up because it's dinner time. Or am I going out of my mind imagining that delicious smell?"  
"No, you're not," he smiled. "Come on. Seth's been going at it in the kitchen. If you ask me, I think he's trying to impress you with his cooking skills."  
"As long as he doesn't poison me, I'm good with whatever," she said. "Let me get changed real quick first. And I would like it if you would turn around this time."

She had to hand it to Seth. He was a great chef. Not only had he made the promised soup, he had also spent the afternoon baking thyme bread. Elias nodded at her and gave her a secret smile. Indeed Seth was trying to impress her.

She thanked him after dinner and told him how good it had tasted. Then she retreated to her own room again. She didn't know what to say to all these men running around the house. Instead she stood in her room, looking out the window.

"Are you okay?" Seth's voice sounded.

She turned her head to see him walk into the room and over to her.

"Just looking," she shrugged. "Elias said I wasn't allowed to leave the house."  
"That's not entirely true. We can't really bring you into town or anything but we own this land and no one comes out here," he took her hand. "Come on. Put on your shoes."

He pulled her over to her shoes she had left next to the bed and waited for her to put them back on. Afterwards they walked out of the house and into the forest together.

"You can walk around out here as long as you stay close to the house," he said.  
"As long as there's fresh air," she looked up at the sky. "And blue sky. Fuck, I missed seeing that."  
"Let me show you my special place," he said.

She followed him to a place where a tree had fallen. They both sat down on the tree and looked ahead. There wasn't anything special about the place. It was just a place in the forest but she enjoyed it.

"I come here to think sometimes," he said.  
"About what?" She asked.  
"About the people we helped. Where they are and how they're doing," he answered.  
"You don't keep in contact with them?" She asked.  
"It's too dangerous. We give them new lives to live and we move on to help others," he smiled at her and took her hand. "Like you. We're gonna help you, Charlene. It's just gonna take a bit longer with you because you're a death row inmate. I knew this was gonna be huge but I didn't think it through entirely. I just knew I had to get you out of there. They've sent out search teams with dogs and helicopters looking for you and the mysterious white car. They won't find either. No one knows about our group."

He placed his arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.

"You're safe here," he said. "But we better get back before the sun sets and we'll get lost out here. The forest is pitch black at night."  
"Black and silent," she said. "I think I would enjoy a night out here."  
"Let's not test that theory," he chuckled lightly. "Now come on. Let's get back to the house."


	3. How does it feel

A month went by and the search didn't die down. It wasn't often people escaped death row and not in a bold way like she had done. Assaulting a guard and walking straight out of there without anyone noticing. The cameras had been down in the area of the assault so no one knew exactly how it had happened. The guard Charly was even being accused by some on social medias for helping out Charlene.

"What's my name gonna be?" She asked Seth one afternoon.  
"What do you mean?" He asked.  
"When you're kicking me out of the nest to fly on my own," she answered. "You said I'm leaving the country on a fake ID."  
"What do you want to be named?" He asked.  
"I don't care," she shrugged. "How about Charlene Rollins?"

He laughed at that and shook his head.

"Nice try, babe," he said.

She wasn't sure when he had started calling her babe but she kind of liked it. Even though there was nothing between them but flirting and friendship, it was nice to be called babe. She couldn't recall ever being called anything sweet by any man. Since it fell so natural for him to call her that, she had started calling him that as well.

"Hey babe," she looked at him. "I've been locked up in this place for a month now. Where can a girl go to get a beer around here?"  
"Fine, I'll call Roman since he's already out shopping," he said.

She watched him as he called Roman and asked him to bring beer home as well as food. She didn't need to get drunk. She just needed to taste some more freedom, and alcohol was forbidden in prison.

Seth hung up and looked at her. She gave him a smile and he smiled back. She smiled more and more but it was only on rare occasions that smile reached her eyes. And when it finally did, she was always smiling at him. Slowly he had made his way into her heart somehow, that much he was sure of.

It was a nice evening like any other evening that month. They played cards and talked as usual. The only difference was the beer that she seemed to enjoy to no ends. Being locked up really made people enjoy the little things in life. Roman had only bought a six pack. Where the guys had taken a beer each, she was on beer number three. They figured she craved it more than them. She wasn't drunk but she seemed more happy and free than she had any day before.

"I'm going to bed," Roman yawned. "You kids don't stay up too late."  
"Goodnight, _dad_ ," Seth joked.  
"I'm so proud of you, son," roman ruffled Seth's hair and winked at Charlene. "Make sure he goes to bed."  
"I will," she said.

There was a minute of silence between them after Roman left. Something felt different on this night. They could both feel it.

"Do you wanna walk me to my room?" She asked.  
"Sure," he answered.

It was a strange request and they both knew it covered up for something more. Something deeper. They walked to her room in silence. He entered alongside with her and closed the door behind them. She emptied her beer and put the bottle down on the nightstand next to the bed.

"So?" She looked at him.

There was something new in those ice blue eyes of hers. A need he hadn't seen before. He closed the gap between them fast and placed his lips upon hers. Her arms wrapped around him and she opened her mouth and deepened the kiss. He groaned and pulled up her long, blueberry coloured dress. It landed on the floor a second later and he did a once-over of her body.

"Fuck!" He whispered.  
"I was hoping we'd do that," she said.

She gave him one of her rare smiles and he quickly tore his own tee off and started opening his pants. She giggled at his eager and reached behind her back to open her bra.

"No, wait," he placed his hands on her shoulders. "I wanna do it."

With what she had told him almost two months ago, her father, the parties, the men she didn't care about but used to feel something, he wanted to show her that it could feel good with a man. That he could and would be good to her. That he could and would cherish every part of her body and not just use her for a quick fuck.

He slid the bra straps down her arms and sent the bra to the floor as well. He pulled her in, feeling her breasts against his chest, as he once again kissed her. His lips found their way down to her neck and further down to her breasts, teasing her nipples while he backed her up to the bed.

"I'm gonna take my sweet time with you," his voice was guttural and thick with lust.  
"Right," she giggled.  
"You'll see," he said. "I got all night."

He got her down on the bed and hooked her panties. He slid them down her legs slowly and threw them down to the growing pile of clothes on the floor. He placed his hands on her thighs, pushing her legs apart as he crawled up between them.

"How long were you in there?" He asked.  
"A year and a half," she answered.  
"A year and a half without any sexual contact," his tongue did a single flick over her clit which made her shiver. "I think you need this bad."  
"Then why the fuck are you keeping me waiting?" She groused.

He killed a laugh the threatened to come out and instead flicked his tongue over her clit again, only this time to continue. Her moans were low, way lower than any woman he had been with before. It made sense. He had no doubt that most women on death row masturbated like every other woman, and they would teach themselves to be quiet so the guards or the other inmates wouldn't hear. He didn't mind though. As long as she enjoyed it, she could keep completely quiet if that's was her thing.

"Seth!" She whispered. "Right there! Don't stop!"

She was begging him in whispers and he kept running his tongue over her, making her fall apart in no time. She bit down on her own hand to kill her moans as she came. He raised his head with a smirk and reached up to pull her hand away.

"No one's gonna hear you," he said. "Don't silence yourself next time."  
"Next time?" She asked.  
"I'm confident in my skills," he winked. "You'll cum again very soon."

He got out of bed and finally got out of his pants that had felt too tight while pleasuring her with his tongue. His socks and briefs followed seconds later before getting back up on the bed. He kissed up her stomach, leaving a word between each kiss.

"You... are... so... beautiful," he lifted his head and smiled. "It almost hurts to look at you."  
"You don't need to smooth talk me. You already got me naked," she said.  
"I'm not..." He started.

She pulled him down and silenced him with a kiss. He would allow it for now but once they were done with the first round, he was gonna tell her again. He was gonna make her believe him.

"Seth!" She purred against his lips. "Fuck me!"

He reached between them and guided himself inside her. She moaned into his mouth and grabbed his ass firmly which made him chuckle a bit.

"What? You've been shaking this thing in front of me for a month now," she said.

He kissed her again as he started moving. Slow at first, building up a pace, wanting to last longer than the few minutes she suspected it would last. His fingers roamed over her body, caressing her skin, while her nails softly ran up and down his back. Slowly he sped up, chasing both of their releases. Hers came first which had been the promised goal. She cried out, a bit louder this time, and he watched her with joy as she fell apart around him. He gave her three more thrusts before cumming inside her.

He buried his head in the crook of her neck, leaving small butterfly kisses on her skin while lazily running his fingers through her hair. Her breathing was heavy but slowly returned to normal after a while. He rolled down next to her and onto his stomach with the side of his head on the pillow so he could look at her.

"Was that okay?" He asked.  
"Better than okay," she smiled at him.

She turned her head back to look up in the ceiling. Her smile had faded as quickly as it had been there. He wondered what was going on inside that beautiful head.

"What are you thinking?" He asked.  
"Just how fucked up my entire life has been," she answered with a sigh. "Maybe if I had met you or someone like you earlier in my life, it would have turned out differently."  
"He would still have touched your niece," he said.  
"But maybe I wouldn't have overreacted and murdered the bastard," she said.

He watched her for a few seconds. There was no emotions there. It was like back in prison when he interviewed her. When she talked about her father and her past, her eyes went dead. She numbed herself.

"How was it?" He asked.  
"How was what?" She asked.  
"Your father and what he did to you," he answered. "How did it feel?"  
"How did it feel?" She sneered.

She moved so fast that he didn't see it coming but he sure as hell felt it. His left arm was behind his back and bent painfully up towards his head. She had a knee pressed down in his lower back and the empty beer bottle was between his ass cheeks. She didn't push it inside him but it was scary enough as it was.

"How did it feel?" She shouted. "How does it feel, Seth? How does it fucking feel having something forced inside your body? Do you wanna find out?"  
"No, please!" He begged.

He could easily fight her off if he wanted to but something made him lie still. Even though she had killed before, he didn't fear for his life. He didn't think she would actually hurt him. But she was connecting with her feelings, something he had wanted her to do, and he felt it was better to let her take it out on him before she chose to bottle it up inside again.

"Lying there night after night, having a man you thought you could trust take your body as he wants. There's this indescribable pain that won't go away. You lie there and you pray to god night after night for it to stop until you finally realize that there is no god. What fucked up god would ever allow something like that? So you stop believing, you stop dreaming, you stop fucking living. You're just there. An empty shell not even daring to hope anymore. You're nothing!" She growled. "That's how it fucking feels, Seth!"  
"Charlene, please," he spoke calmly. "Let me up. Let me hold you, babe."  
"Fuck!" She shouted.

She jumped out of bed and threw the bottle into the wall as hard as she could. A loud splinter sounded as the glass bottle broke. She went through the clothes on the floor and pulled her dress free. He slowly sat up on the bed as he watched her put on the dress. He wanted to stop her but she was so fast. She tore the door open and collided with Elias that had just come from work and was still in his uniform.

"What's with all the noise?" He asked.  
"I just need some air," she said.

She pushed her way around him and was gone within a second. Elias looked at Seth and shook his head.

"And you're naked. What did you do?" He asked.  
"Nothing," Seth started to get dressed. "I just said something stupid."  
"Must have been really stupid for her to storm out like that," Elias placed his hands in his sides and then looked down in horror. "Fuck! She took my gun, Seth."


	4. Stay or go

Seth sprinted out of the house while Elias woke up Roman. There was no point in telling Elias that he would handle it. Rather have him run to Roman so he didn't follow Seth where he was going. He had a good feeling where she had run to despite it being pitch black outside.

He took out his phone and turned on the flashlight as he walked into the forest. A month ago he had shown her his special place and he knew she used it like him. They often went there together. He wasn't surprised when he found her sitting on the fallen tree. He stopped and kept the light on her from behind.

"I'm not gonna shoot you, Seth," she said.  
"I know," he said. "I'm just really hoping you're not gonna shoot yourself either."  
"Why not?" She asked.

He walked over to sit next to her. He watched as she held the gun in her hands.

"Because I care about you," he said.  
"Right," she cried. "You can't wait to send me away. You said it yourself. You don't keep contact with anyone you send to another country. Did it ever cross your mind that I don't wanna fucking go?"  
"You have to. It's the only way we can..." He started.  
"Keep me safe?" She shouted. "God, you're so fucking stupid!"

She stood up and took a couple of steps away from him. He kept sitting on the tree with his phone in his hand, watching her staring at him.

"I was happy in there," she said.  
"In where? On death row?" He asked.  
"I was happy because I knew my time was limited. I was gonna die. I didn't need to feel this pain inside for long," she said.  
"Christ, Charlene," he muttered. "Then why did you walk out of there? You could have refused. You could have stayed."  
"For a moment I became that 13 year old kid telling my mom and hearing her say she would fix it. I heard the child in me telling me that Seth would fix it. But you can't, Seth. You just fucking can't," she said.  
"Yes, I can. I'm trying my hardest here to give you a new life," he said.  
"I don't wanna be saved, Seth. I don't wanna start a new life alone in another country. I can't do it. I can't figure out how to be on my own. I just wanna die," she said. "And here I am, pathetic as always, because I can't even fucking kill myself."

He stood up, walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her. He held her close for half a minute before sliding his hand down her arm to the hand that held the gun.

"Give it to me," he said.

She let him take the gun but then closed her own hand over his and pointed the gun at her stomach.

"Charlene!" He growled.  
"Do it, Seth, Please. I'm fucking begging you here. Don't send me away. Kill me instead," she said.  
"I'm not gonna kill you," he said.  
"Fucking coward!" She sneered.  
"You can hurt me any way you want right now," he pulled the gun behind his back and ran his free hand through her hair. "I'm not gonna back down. I'm not gonna hurt you, babe."  
"I'm not your fucking babe!" She pushed him away. "You are just another name on my long list of fuck buddies."

Fighting with her right there was useless. She would continue to lash out and it would hurt even though he knew she didn't mean it.

"Fine," he nodded. "I can live with that. Let's go back to the house. Roman and Elias are out there searching for you too. Just gonna send them a quick text that I found you."

They were met by two worried faces when they came back to the house. Seth handed Elias his gun back. She crossed her arms and stared at Elias.

"You're driving me back tomorrow," she said.  
"The fuck I am!" He protested.  
"You can drop me off anywhere you want and I'll walk the rest of the way," she said. "You either drive me or I'll find my own way there from here. Either way I'm going back. I'm gonna back up the story already out in the media. I assaulted Charly and ran off. None of your names will ever come up."

Roman looked at Seth and then at her.

"We didn't go through all this trouble to get you out just for you to go back in," he said.  
"Well, tough shit! I don't give a fuck!" She sneered.  
"Charlene," Seth tried.  
"What are you gonna do, Seth? Drop me off in an airport and force me out of the country?" She stared at him. "I'll make such a scene that every security guard will know who I am and then I'll go back anyway. No, tomorrow it is. I'm grateful for what you've done but no more."

She walked inside and left the three men alone. Seth sighed and started moving inside too.

"Seth," Roman started.  
"Not now," Seth said.  
"But we need to talk about this," Roman said.  
"I said not now!" Seth snapped. "Just give me five minutes alone to think about it. Put on some coffee. I'll come meet you in the kitchen."  
"Five minutes," Elias said.

It was around 4 AM when Charlene woke up to someone crawling under the covers and wrapping his arms around her.

"What the...?" She mumbled.  
"Ssh, it's just me," Seth shushed her. "Go back to sleep. It's way too early to get up."  
"Seth?" She turned over to watch him through the darkness. "What are you doing in here?"  
"I was hoping to get some sleep but you don't seem to allow it," he said.

He cracked a smile at her through the darkness before pulling her close to kiss her.

"We've talked for hours. We're not sending you away," he said. "I'm not sending you away."  
"You're not?" She asked.  
"You're not going to another country but you're sure as hell not going back to death row either. I'm not delusional. I know it's a lot of me to ask you to stay in this house forever and never show your face anywhere but you'll be free. You'll be with me. Please, babe, I never meant to fall in love with you but I did. I fell for you the second you were led into the interview with me two months ago and this last month has made me fall deeper," he said. "I love you, Charlene Shooter. Please stay with me."

He kissed her again, crying too, not giving her a chance to answer. She finally managed to push him over on his back and climb up on top of him to get some space between their faces.

"I'll stay," she said.  
"You will?" He asked.  
"I love you too, Seth Rollins," she said. "I've never loved anyone before so don't you fucking dare break my heart."  
"I won't. I promise," he said. "And in time the news about you will die out. We can change your appearance with hair dye and maybe a hair cut if you're up for it. A good hat and a pair of sunglasses and we can go places together."  
"We'll figure it out," she said.

She bowed her head down to kiss him. He rolled them around so he was on top of her.

"This is anything but ideal," he said.  
"Who the fuck cares if we can make each other happy?" She said.  
"Are you happy with me?" He asked.  
"I am," she stroked his cheeks. "I kept pushing my feelings away but I am, Seth."

They slept until 11 AM before finally getting out of bed and meeting Elias and Roman that looked just as tired.

"So fucking happy I'm on evening shifts this week," Elias said.  
"Long night indeed," Roman said. "How are you feeling, Charlene? Seth told you everything?"  
"He did. Are you two are okay with it?" She asked.  
"I think it might be good having you here," Roman handed her a cup of coffee. "We're gonna continue busting people out here and there and it might be good for them to have someone to talk to that has been where they are. Someone who knows the fear and everything."

She pointed a finger at Seth.

"Just don't go falling for another one," she said.  
"Only you, babe," he wrapped his arms around her from behind and kissed her cheek. "Only you."


End file.
